Crude prices rise slightly amid dropping gasoline stocks

On Thursday, crude prices inched closer to the $41-a-barrel level, when data issued overnight suggested a drop in the glut of refined fuel.

In New York, September deliver sweet, light oil futures gained 0.2%, hitting $40.90 per barrel. Crude prices soared above the $40 mark having tipped below that level earlier this week for the first time for three months.

On Wednesday, American oil shot up 3.3% just to settle at $40.83 per a barrel after American government data shocked market participants with a 3.3 million-barrel dip in gasoline inventories there. Additionally, changes to fuel inventories are of particular interest to investors, because a renewed glut of fuel has pushed crude prices lower in recent weeks. Aside from that, crude prices had entered a bear market, already defined as a dip of about 20% or more from a recent peak, earlier in the week.

The abrupt sag in gasoline stockpiles definitely contrasted with a soar in crude inventories, though the market decided to ignore the counter-seasonal, bearish as well as surprising build in crude oil.